Just a couple of things
Folks are only hurting themselves when they attempt to hurt a public utility. Those big utilities are us.
When you "sock it to 'em" you're only hurting yourself. It's you who pays the bill.
Recently we've noticed that some of the competitors of large public utilities, even with special privilege, have failed while America depends on "old faithful."
The phone company, SBC Southwestern Bell, has been getting a raw deal for years in Kansas. Although SBC has invested heavily and poured a lot of experience into the business, the government decided that they needed more competition.
And the competition has full access to the SBC experience.
They offered service cheaper, not better. And many have gone broke. It's interesting to notice that those who went broke soon were the ones who had scant investment in lines and networks. They used Bell infrastructure.
Broadband, the highway to Internet communications of the future, has been an area where SBC is taking the shaft. It must be deregulated in Kansas so SBC can compete on a level playing field with other providers.
Right now, SBC has fiber-optic cable available in Marion but can't offer it here. A regulation keeps the telephone company from offering that service.
With deregulation in Kansas, SBC could offer DSL broadband service to small towns which don't have it.
— BILL MEYER
